Ice Burns
by ZathoryGlum
Summary: Everybody noticed the effect Bobby had on John. He turned the insufferable jerk into someone tolerable. He was good for him./Concentrates on the relationships over the three movies & after.Bobby/John I made the title up on the spot, so it's very silly xD
1. Chapter 1

_So, I've been wanting to write something like this for a while, and here we go._

_Do you want to know how many times I've watched the x-men films when writing this? __**Too damn many**__. I could recite them by now, not that that's a bad thing._

_**Pairings: Bobby/ John **_

_** Marie/ Bobby**_

Everybody noticed the effect Bobby had on John. Before Bobby arrived John was insufferable, people would exit rooms when he entered to avoid his anger. His roommates usually only had to spend one night with him before, swearing they preferred the couch and transferred rooms. John's anger was infamous, people had heard stories of him setting rooms on fire, the younger ones even had a rumour going about that John had set Professor Xavier's hair on fire once, and that was why he was bald. The teachers put up with him because the alternative was worse, the Brotherhood was always recruiting and a young angry fire mutant was perfect. Especially one with such a grudge against humans.

When Bobby arrived the change was slow. Bobby had been put in the same room as John, much to John's displeasure. The boys initially hated each other, and they fought constantly. It was after the second week that things started changing, it was slow at first but the fights gradually stopped and they sat together at lunches and they hung about after school. They talked a lot, and John opened up to the other boy, told him about his parents sending him to a church camp to 'cure' him. He told him about the beatings his father had issued out when John first told him that he wasn't straight. The mutant thing only brought about more beatings. His mother had done nothing, and when they had heard about a man who was looking for mutants to do experiments on mutants, they were willing to send him away. John had burned down the house. His parents survived, much to his dismay. John had left with tears in his eyes. It was the last time he cried. Bobby would listen, Bobby didn't judge him, or hate him, Bobby agreed, that anyone willing to do that to their child deserved it. John had even awkwardly hugged Bobby. It was in ethics class that people noticed the biggest change. Whenever John would go off on a tangent about how humans were inferior, all it took was a cold hand on his shoulder for him to calm him down. The boys stuck together and laughed and joked, for many of the students it was the first time they had seen anything but a frown on John face. John had even started listening to Bobby when he would say that not all humans are bad, just because his parents were evil.

They had first kissed after two months, on the coldest day of winter, on John's birthday. They were sitting in their room, John was ranting about how he hated his birthday, because nobody ever remembered. Bobby had grinned and pulled a little rectangular gift from under his pillow and threw it at John, who looked so surprised it was almost comical. Bobby hummed Happy Birthday as John peeled of the wrapping. Inside was a lighter with a shark on the side. John clicked it open and juggled little balls of fire with a massive smile on his face. It was the first present he'd received in years, and Professor Summers had binned Johns' father's old one, which he'd been secretly glad to get rid of. John flicked it shut and threw his arms around Bobby. The kiss came naturally, neither boy had planned for it, but it was perfect. John held Bobby's head and pressed their foreheads together. "Thank you" he whispered. They sat like that for a moment, nose to nose, breathing softly. John kissed the cold boy lightly on the mouth. There was a moment when he'd regretted it, sure that Bobby was going to freak out. The thought was interrupted by Bobby's lips on his. John was a surprisingly gentle kisser for someone so usually violent and abrasive. They spent the evening like that, John sitting on Bobby's lap just looking at each other, Bobby's cold breath cooling Johns face. And lots of kissing. It was the best birthday he could remember.

For the first time in the teachers' memories, John was happy. He would sit in class smiling, playing with a shark lighter. It was downright eerie for John to be so happy.

The boys never spoke about it as such. It was just something that happened, they would kiss and share a bed, and sometimes hands would wander under the covers. But there was never a discussion, there didn't need to be. After two months of this Bobby finally gained the courage to ask John, "Are we boyfriends?" John had been quiet for a second before replying. "I want to be if you do" For a while it was perfect, and even the teachers noticed what was going on, the fact that their beds had been pushed together sealed their suspicions.

Coming out to the other students was some ordeal for John. He didn't have the best track record of being accepted, the fact that for a good few years he was an asshole to everyone didn't help. Bobby was less worried, the teachers wouldn't allow anyone to bully them. Piotr Rasputin was the first one Bobby told, they were in the same classes and were good friends. Piotr just laughed and told Bobby that he was deluded if they thought that everyone didn't already suspect something, but not to worry. The rumour spread like wild fire and by the end of the week everybody knew. It was the happiest John had ever been. He had a fantastic boyfriend who would skip classes with him and fool around in supply closets, although because John didn't have the best self-control, stuff always seemed to end up burned. He also wasn't as mean so people seemed not to hate him so much, he was even doing better in school.

It didn't last long though, calm before the storm and all that. With the arrival of Marie and Logan came arguments between the boys. Bobby was upset by the way John's eyes always seemed to wander towards the older man. Bobby's friendship with Marie set John's teeth on edge, they argued about her the first night of her arrival, about why Bobby would ask her to have dinner with them, to offer to show her around the school. They made up though and it was quickly forgotten.

The final straw for Bobby was when John had zoned out of Bobby and his' conversation to stare at Logan, when the older man looked over at the boys, John winked at him. The confused look on Logan's face made John snigger. Bobby had shattered the glass he was holding. John remained adamant, that he only did it to confuse Logan and that he was clearly joking, and that Bobby was being a paranoid idiot for thinking anything more. The two days in which they didn't talk were the toughest for the school. They would sit and glare at each other in class and John would scorch whatever he was touching. John spent two days on the sofa because Bobby would freeze the door shut. They made up with an apology from John and a promise from Bobby not to be so paranoid. The teachers were thankful not to find any more hand prints burned into desks.

It was Johns turn to freak out when he walked into their room to find Marie and Bobby sitting listening to music. Bobby was making ice roses for the girl. John told her to fuck off, and he melted the flowers. He threw Bobby out the room too for good measure. The fight this time lasted a week, and it was more violent than last time. When Bobby had tried to justify himself John had punched him, "Fuck off back to your girlfriend" he had screamed at him. This time the teachers intervened. Professor Xavier had them brought to his office to talk it out. It ended badly, the carpet didn't survive and there were scorch marks on the roof. That was the first time either boy had heard the Professor raise his voice. Bobby was moved room that day, the next day they officially broke up. They both managed to escape with a black eye. John cried for the first time in years that night, curled up in bed sobbing silently, playing with the lighter Bobby bought him. He blamed Marie, it was her fault for tempting Bobby away, and what could she give him, nothing. He couldn't even touch her. He fell asleep and dreamt of roasting her alive.

Bobby didn't take the break up well either, he spent days after moping about, at least he had Marie he told himself. The night that Logan stabbed Marie was horrifying for Bobby, he was woken up by people running past his room, he remembered stumbling out of bed in a daze, running to Logan's room, where a crowd had gathered. Seeing her there, with the wounds in her back freaked Bobby out. He had to stop himself running into the room and grabbing her away from Logan, he was glad he didn't as she used Logan's power to heal herself. The day after was worse, she hid herself away and Bobby had to endure the loud jokes John was telling to his new roommate, a kid with blue hair who had the ability of super speed. John would loudly ask what Marie was even doing in Logan's room and he referred to her as "The Gift Thief". It took all of Bobby's self-control not to punch him in the face.

He wasn't laughing when Rogue disappeared though. To his credit, when his new roommate, 'Speed', made a joke John shouted at him about when not to take it too far. After the first day she was gone John approached a teary eyed Bobby in the canteen and sat across from him, "I'm sorry about Rogue" he mumbled. Bobby stood up, looking furious, "What do you care, you hate her!" he shouted at the boy, "Maybe I did, but I hate you being upset more, and this is clearly tearing you up. So I'm sorry" John shrugged and walked away.

They hung out a few times before she arrived back. Apologies were exchanged and they agreed to be civil. John promised not to make fun of Marie. They didn't say much to each other, other than that but it was civil enough.

When Rogue arrived back Bobby was overjoyed, John wasn't. He decided to be civil to her though, he tried to tell himself that he had changed, the reality was, of course that he desperately missed being with Bobby. At least this way they could hang out. He didn't even tell Bobby that Rogue was completely in love with Logan.

John was in a strange place, he couldn't tell if he was happy or not. He had Bobby sort of back, and there was an on and off thing between him and Speed. He could definitely call what he was happy, but not content, not like he was when he was with Bobby.

_This is probably going to be less than 10 chapters long, the first three chapters will be detailing their relationship in each of the movies, and stuff like that, if it all goes to plan._

_-__**zg**_


	2. Chapter 2

_Here we have Chapter 2 (part one) I split it into two parts because together it was over 4000 words._

_Hope you enjoy_

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><p>"My brother asked you a simple question"<p>

"Why you being such a dick?"

"Yeah, why you being such a dick"

John smirked and clicked his lighter open and closed once more. "Because I can"

Rogue giggled and Bobby smirked

The boy asked again for a light, John was fiercely protective of this lighter. No one else had ever used it. It took a lot to hand over. So, "Sorry, can't help you out pal"

Rogue complained, obviously, it'd stopped being funny. Bobby joined in too, there was no conviction in his voice forever, so John decided to mess about with him. That was when the fucker took his lighter from him.

You just didn't do shit like that. Especially not his lighter, the one Bobby gave him. Not many people understood the significance of the lighter, and John didn't tell anyone. Funny, jokey John was gone. He stood up and went after his lighter, his source of power, Bobby's present.

It took all of Johns patience not obliterate the boys. A little burn wouldn't hurt them though, and the light from the cigarette was easy to manipulate. He winked at the smug one, set his arm on fire, that would teach him to steal from him. He laughed as the boy collapsed onto a table, as Bobby ruined his fun.

And then time froze, he sneered at Rogue, thinking it was Bobby. He has assumed it was Bobby first too, but it was stupid when she did it. John snatched up his lighter and held it tightly. Nobody took his lighter without his permission.

John had almost fully got over Bobby, mostly. He no longer found it painful to look at them holding hands and luckily for him, they couldn't kiss. He could tell that Bobby wanted too though, and he would soon tire of the above the clothes hand holding. John was glad. Piotr Rasputin helped John forget, Bobby had seemed jealous at first, and they didn't really talk about it.

The three of them were sitting in the fun room. Bobby and John were playing chess, while Rogue watched eagerly. John was playing with his lighter, he was practicing making disks of flame, and failing. "John, how come you always have that lighter?" Rogue asked softly. John frowned and looked at Bobby, who glanced up at him, "I can't start my own flames, so I need to use this" He said, flicking the lighter open. "No, I know that, Bobby said. But why that lighter?"

John looked genuinely confused for a moment, but it passed. Bobby had looked up from the chess board and was shaking his head slowly. John smirked, "Bobby gave it to me. The first time we kiss-"

"Shut the hell up John"

Bobbys face was beet red, John frowned at him, then looked at Rogue, who was looking embarrassed. "It was given to me by someone really special this one time."

John stood up and stormed out, leaving the happy couple in an awkward silence.

Bobby had always respected Logan, and resented him. Rogue always seemed more interested in him than she was in Bobby, whenever he was away she would badger Storm daily about where he was, it was driving Bobby up the wall. Not touching was getting tough too, he was a teenage boy and he had to survive without touching his girlfriend, he never had the same problem with John, but he swore he would never compare the two. All he wanted to do was to kiss her, but he couldn't even do that. He sometimes wondered what things would be like if he were still with John. He was happy with them being just friends though, glad he didn't have feelings for the boy as that would just cause problems. That was when Logan interrupted his thoughts for a beer, Bobby was stuffing his face with ice cream, a simple solution to all his problems, usually anyway. Bobby wouldn't deny that Logan was handsome, but he couldn't see what Rogue seen in him, he thought it was the cocky attitude. Bobby smirked as Logan hunted for a beer, and pointed him to the drinks cupboard. The older man would have to get by on soda. As he brought it to his lips he looked thoughtfully at Bobby and handed him the glass. Bobby laughed and blew on it, chilling it. He usually didn't like being the walking refrigerator, but he wanted to show off to Logan a little bit.

"That's a pretty handy power, _Ice man_" Logan said with a smirk, leaning on the kitchen island.

Bobby just smirked. For some reason Logan asked about his past, his parents. They were a topic that Bobby usually avoided, the only time he'd had an in-depth talk about his parents was with John. He didn't like admitting that he was too ashamed to tell his parents about his powers, he preferred that they thought he was at some sort of prep school.

"So you and Rogue, huh?" The question surprised Bobby for some reason, of course Logan would ask about Rogue. Bobby figured that since Logan knew her the best, he could take a chance and talk to him.

"I mean, it's not what you think. I'd like it to be but it's just…" Bobby looked down at his ice cream, he'd been mashing it up and it just looked like a mess now. "It's just that it's not easy when you want to be closer to someone, but you can't"

Logan was watching the boy, brow furrowed. "You know, it can't be easy for her either."

"Oh, I know. I can't even imagine what it must be like for her, I mean, I've been with people before, and you know not had this problem." He sighed and looked up at Logan, "I know it's harder on her. But it's tough for both of us, she's used to this, I'm _really_ not." Logan smirked.

"Your last girlfriend, bit of a wild one then?" Bobby froze, his last girlfriend was a boyfriend he wanted to tell him. A bit of a wild one though none the less. "More or less" he said with a shrug, not looking at Logan, mixing his ice cream. Logan pushed on, "So, what was her power?" Bobby took a deep breath, a cold mist coming out. "He could manipulate fire."

Logan nodded before double taking, "He?" Bobby nodded and froze his ice cream again. "I miss him sometimes, not even the _joy_ of his company, I just really _fucking_ miss being able to touch someone"

Logan nodded. "I understand. Don't you fucking hurt Rogue though, y'hear?"

Before Bobby could thank him, Logan stood up and looked confused. That was when he was almost shot. The chaos of it was horrible, bullets were flying and someone was screaming, all Bobby could do was cower while the bullets littered the kitchen. Bobby just felt helpless as Logan killed the man, he was surprised that he'd not pissed himself, he was too scared to speak. He just stayed in the kitchen like he was told and worried. His first thought, although he'd never admit it, was for John, he wondered where John was, if he was okay. He didn't even consider that he was not, John couldn't get hurt. His second thought was for Rogue, he couldn't imagine her getting hurt, and he didn't want to lose her again. So he sprang into action and went to find Rogue, although he had no doubt that she could very well look after herself, she was tough like that.

He seen John upstairs and his heart skipped a beat. _Thank god_. At least John was okay. He didn't stop for long, just to tell him that he was looking for Rogue, he heard John running after him. It didn't take long to find her in the newly deserted corridors, they didn't have time to stop running. They followed after Rogue, trusting her sense of direction.

Logan saved Bobby's life again. And he saved Johns and Rogues. He had a lot to owe Logan. They couldn't stop running though. He saved Logan's ass with Stryker, although it was mainly so he could keep saving their asses. Bobby didn't like owing someone so much.

They took Cyclops' car and kept running. Bobby was more scared than he would admit to anyone. John knew though, because Bobby felt his and on his knee. He smiled and gripped Johns hand, the heat flowing up his arm. Bobby could sense John rolling his eyes at Rogue and Logans romantic moment in the front seat. It was grating at Bobby, although he was holding Johns hand, so he couldn't complain. He tried to justify it in his head _'Well, I can't hold Rogues hand, she's not wearing gloves and I'll die' _or _'I was too cold, and I needed heating up'_ or _'John gets that I'm scared out of my wits'_. He couldn't imagine any of them flying with the people in the front. John jumped forward then, to get the radio, and ruined the nice silence. Bobby thought for a second that the hand holding was over, but he soon felt John's warm hand in his again. _'It's not cheating, we're just holding hands'_. When Bobby heard that they were going to Boston, he shifted uncomfortably, "that's where my parents live" he mumbled John gripped his hand, it would be uncomfortable, if it wasn't Johns. Bobby was overcome with an urge to kiss him, and it freaked him out. '_It's totally innocent babe, I just want to hold his hand and kiss him' _He gripped Johns hand and placed it on back on Johns own lap, too tempting. He curled up against the window and tried to get some sleep.

Bobby's house made John uncomfortable. From the moment he walked in he felt unwelcome, he always did in nice places. Bobby had led him up to his brother's room to get clothes. It was awkward. Bobby handed him some of his brothers old stuff, John was a little annoyed that it looked like it would fit. John felt like he needed to bring up the hand holding, he kept telling himself that it was just to comfort Bobby, who was obviously terrified. Bobby lay on the bed while John changed. He had to admit, the clothes didn't look half bad. Just as they were about to leave the room John grabbed Bobby's hand again and pulled him towards him. He pulled him into a hug. They stood like that for a while, just hugging. John wouldn't try and kiss him, although he wanted to. It wouldn't be fair on Rogue. Bobby pulled away and awkwardly trotted out of the room, saying he had to go get Rogue some clothes. John smirked. He could have Bobby right now if he wanted too, but he wouldn't do that to Rogue, 'cause then Logan would kill them all.

John took a walk around Bobby's house, stopping to examine the pictures. He hated them, all of them. The happy-fucking-family act that everyone felt necessary. Jonhs family never even pretended. Everyone knew that his parents treated him like scum, nobody helped him though, pathetic. He wanted to punch through the pictures, all of them. Bobby'd say that he was just envious of his family. Even John could admit that he'd do anything to have a family like Bobby's.

Happy fucking families. He couldn't escape this one. He had to stand awkwardly while Bobby confessed to his parents that he was a mutant. He didn't envy Bobby now, he couldn't go through that again, and at least Bobby's parents didn't look like they were going to murder him. It was still painful, the awkwardness of it. He hated it. He played with his lighter out of habit. Out of the corner of his eye he watched as Ronny, whose boxers he was wearing, was becoming more and more agitated. He was clearly very upset by the idea that his brother was a mutant. John smiled at Mrs. Drakes panic over the frozen tea. She looked terrified. John hated her. He wanted to be the one seated next to Bobby, he wanted to hold Bobby as his brother ran out, tell him that it was okay. Instead he had Rogue, whose kiss would kill him. He tried to give Bobby an encouraging smile.

Then little Ronny decided to call the cops, Johns least favourite people. It was Ronnys fault. The smug little shit. Then they shot Logan. John had never had a _strong_ opinion about Logan, but what he did know was that he saved his ass. And that the police fired first, and that they were still pointing at him. It was self-defence what he did and it helped him blow off a little steam. It was a weird place, in his head, and he didn't like it, it was a scary place when he didn't care if he hurt anyone. '_They shot first'_ He kept telling himself as the cars burned and the people screamed.

Dying was a weird feeling. Having all your life force sucked out of you. It was horrible. John wanted to vomit, but he couldn't, and he needed to cry. It was uncomfortable and painful, but he couldn't scream. He was dying. Then Rogue let go

He wanted to hurt her, he really did. She held on longer than she needed too, and he could have died. He seen Bobby glancing at him every few seconds, he wanted to ask if he was okay, he could tell. He wouldn't though, he was supposed to side with Rogue.

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><p>End of Part 1<p>

_-zg_


	3. Chapter 3

_Chapter 2 (part 2)_

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><p>John was watching Bobby, he could tell that he was close to tears. Bobby rarely cried, and he wouldn't do it in public. He wanted to hold Bobby, say sorry for completely destroying any chance he might have had with his parents. The aggression rush had ended and it had been replaced by shame, he shouldn't have used his powers like that, if nothing else, it proved to Bobby's parents that mutants were 'dangerous.' The cops totally deserved it though, they shot Logan.<p>

He found himself staring at Rogue, she at least looked upset. He wouldn't forgive her now, she had _hurt_ him, really hurt him. He still felt like he was going to vomit. And no doubt she wouldn't be given into trouble, it would be him no doubt. And it was, Logan blamed him for the air crafts following them, he didn't even bother protesting, it wouldn't do any good.

John didn't like flying at the best of times, so with the added diving and spinning, John was lucky he didn't vomit. John wasn't particularly sorry when Rogue went flying out of the plane, he knew it was wrong to feel like that, but she had almost killed him. He felt sorry for Bobby though, who seemed to really care for her. Kurt brought her back though '_thank god'_ he thought sarcastically. It was her own fault that she didn't do up her seat belt he reasoned.

The plane was hurtling towards the ground, and all John could do was close his eyes and pretend to be somewhere else. It wasn't working. He didn't want to die, not at all.

Magneto saved them. He was supposed to be the bad guy. He was the one who had kidnapped Rogue before, but he saved them. He didn't like owing his life to anyone, especially not the 'bad guy'.

Bobby and John were sharing a tent, much to Bobby's dismay. There was so much he wanted to say to stupid angry boy, who was currently pretending to be asleep.

"I know you're awake" He whispered, moving closer to John.

"_How"_ If Bobby hadn't been listening for it, he wouldn't have heard it. Bobby shrugged, "I can tell, you breathe different." He put his hand on Johns shoulder, "Did Rogue hurt you today?" He felt John tense up.

"It was horrible Bobby, I felt like I was dying, like I needed to vomit. She held on for longer than she needed too." Bobby sat up and crossed his legs. "It's the worst feeling ever, right?" John turned around and frowned. "How do you know?"

"We kissed" Bobby said with a shrug. "It was fine at first, but then it went really badly wrong, it's the worst feeling ever." John sat up too and wrapped a blanket around him. He looked more nervous than Bobby had ever seen him, "Bobby, I'm…really sorry, about how I acted at your house, I mean, someone could have gotten hurt, and now I've ruined any chance you had with your family, and I just-"

"Shut up John. My family ruined any chance they had with me when Ronny called the cops. And you were acting in self-defence, they did shoot Logan. We would be locked up if it wasn't for you, or worse." Bobby brushed John's hair behind his ear, and made him look at him. "John, I should be thanking you. What you did was drastic and stupid, but you did the right thing."

The feeling Bobby had in the car was back again, he was overcome by a need to kiss John. He leaned forward and leaned his forehead against Johns, and pressed their lips together. '_Don't worry Rogue, we're just friends who hold hands and kiss.' _ They heard footsteps approaching the tent and they leaped apart. John looked away, ashamed. Rogue unzipped the tent and stepped in. "You boys still up?" she said, looking at John. "This is the boy's tent, _Marie_. What do you want?" John said, a little more forcefully than was necessary. "Bobby, could you help me put my tent up, I can't get the pump working." Bobby nodded, still not able to form words. '_Hey Rogue, since I can't kiss you, or do anything else, I can use John, would that be okay sweetie?' _Bobby spent the walk to Rogues tent mentally kicking himself. How could he be that stupid? He loved Rogue, but it was just hard when kissing her meant him almost dying.

John lay curled up in the tent while Bobby was away. Why had he done that? Bobby had only kissed him because he couldn't kiss Rogue, it wasn't fair. He didn't care if he was being selfish, he wanted Bobby all to himself. Bobby came back in and lay down, facing him. "I can't leave Rogue" He said, pain in his voice. "Why not Bobby? We're good together."

"Dammit John, because I don't want to leave her. You're just convenient, you're just there to kiss when I can't kiss her. That's all that was." Bobby hissed at him, icy breath in his face.

"Fuck you Bobby Drake." John whispered venomously, turning his back on him. Curling up in a ball with his back to Bobby, angry tears rolling down his face, he fell asleep.

Bobby didn't talk to John on the plane. He wanted to tell him that he was sorry, that he didn't mean it. He didn't want to approach Magneto or Mystique though, and John seemed to be talking to them a lot. Bobby didn't like that, John was easily swayed and wasn't too fond of humans. He didn't want John to end like them.

John _liked_ Magneto. He didn't want to, he knew that they weren't good people, but he found himself drawn to Magneto.

"What's your _real _name?" John held the fire in his hand, Bobby and he had talked about what their 'mutant' names would be. Bobby had settled on 'Iceman' and John, had no idea what his would be, Bobby eventually suggested it, what his 'mutant' name would be. He fitted it he supposed.

"Pyro" He said softly.

"You are a _god_ amongst insects, don't let anybody tell you different" John was taken aback, nobody had ever said anything like that to him. He was too shocked to say anything. Instead he just started playing with his lighter again. How could Magneto be the _bad_ guy? He understood John.

John, Bobby and Rogue were told to stay in the aircraft. They were too young to fight apparently. It was bullshit and they all knew it.

It was awkward on the plane. Rogue was the only one who didn't know why. Bobby kept looking at John, like he wanted to say something. John was just juggling with fireballs. Rogue walked over to him. "John, I'm sorry about what I did in Boston." He ignored her. "John I thought you were going to hurt somebody." He stood up now. They were almost nose to nose.

"No, _Marie_ it was you that hurt someone, you hurt me. Do you know how it feels for someone to have you touch them? It's the worst feeling in the world. It feels like dying." He pushed past her and sat on the other side of the plane, playing with his lighter. Rogue looked to Bobby to back her up. But he seemed to be concentrating on the window. Rogue sat down, a lump in her throat.

John was getting more and more restless in the confined space. He hated feeling helpless. He jumped up and opened the stairs, he was going to go help, "I'm sick of this kiddie-table shit, I'm going in there"

"John, you can't" John stopped and looked at Bobby.

"I can. And you should. Come with me Bobby." John reached out a hand.

"John I can't-"

"It's her or me" He shouted, zipping up his jumper. Bobby looked at Rogue, then back to John.

"John, I can't just leave." John threw his hands in the air, "That's fine then." He said with a fake laugh. He ran down the stairs of the aircraft two at a time. He could feel tears burning in his eyes.

Rogue looked at Bobby, who was silent, and touched his arm. "What did he mean 'her or me?'" Bobby shrugged and sat down again. "I have no idea" Rogue sat in the front of the plane, the awkward silence returning.

John was writhing in the snow, hands over his ears. As if it would do any good. The screeching in his ears was unbearable. He wished that he had just grabbed Bobby on that plane, grabbed him and kissed him, right there in front of Rogue. Shown her that he was better. The screeching stopped as suddenly as it had started. He stood up shakily, and wiped tears from his eyes. He seen Magneto and Mystique about to take off in Stryker's helicopter, the choice was easy, he had to go with them. Bobby had already decided that he didn't want to be with John, and there was nothing left for him at the school. He _had_ to go with Magneto and Mystique, they understood him.

Bobby watched as the children and teachers filed on the plane. _No John_. He was shaking in his seat. Trying to remain calm, John couldn't be dead. He heard someone shout "Where's John."

Logan and the teachers looked around for him. "He's with Magneto" Professor Grey said quietly. Bobby let out a sigh of relief, at least he was alive. Rogue looked at him, in the chaos that followed with Professor Grey saving them, he heard Rogue whisper "_He'll be okay Bobby" _He nodded stiffly. At least he was alive, and okay_. And with Magneto._ How could John betray him like that? He ignored the fact that he had just the previous night told John that he meant nothing to him, and chose Rogue over him.

At least he was alive. At least he could tell himself that John was alive.

The first night back in the school was painful. The school always felt to calm, so _quiet_ without John. He wouldn't talk to anyone, including Rogue. He didn't really blame her, but if she wasn't there the then John would be. And with John, they could share a bed, kiss, _anything. _With John he could be a real boyfriend. Rogue wouldn't understand why he missed _Pyro _so much.

He didn't realise that John was missing him just as much.

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><p><em>So I realise the ending to this is pretty shoddy, but I'm pretty much proud of the rest of it. <em>

_Also, in the process of writing these last two chapters, I watched X-2 at least five times. xD After the next chapter I should be able to pretty much take it in my own direction, because I want to work __**mostly**__in canon. _

_I hope you enjoy reading these as much as I had writing it. _


	4. Chapter 4

_Here we have ~*~chapter3~*~ (chapter 4 for convenience tho)_

_**EDIT:18/08/22; after trying and failing to write a decent memory loss story line, I've decided to throw away that idea, so the end of this chapter is slightly different**_

Bobby couldn't help but like Kitty. She was everything John was, but not part of the Brotherhood. He knew that his relationship with Rogue was on the rocks. She maintained that because Bobby was a guy that he was only interested in the physical. He had never put any pressure on Rogue, sure he would _like_ to take their relationship further, sure it got difficult, but he never, _ever_ put any pressure on her. He knew she wanted to take it further too, but the problem was that they _couldn't_ and it was getting more and more difficult to deal with that. He would never admit that he still missed John or _Pyro_ as he was more commonly known now.

It was Rogue that told him about the cure. She came rushing into his room with a massive grin on her face. "They can _cure_ me." She said, the grin never leaving her face. "Rogue, you don't need cured, there's nothing wrong with you." Her smile faltered. "Bobby, if I get this, I can _touch_ people. You're lucky, your power isn't dangerous to _everyone_" She ran back out, to talk to Storm. The thought of a cure made him uneasy, he _wanted_ to touch Rogue in theory, but when faced with the reality that he might be able to, he was suddenly less eager. He could only imagine what John was feeling.

"A **cure!**" He shouted, heat resonating from his fists, he was pacing about the Brotherhood lair, Magneto sitting silently behind a desk. Pyro smacked the metal desk, "Why are they talking about this like it's some sort of fucking saviour. Who the _fuck_ wants a fucking cure. It's fucking cowardly." He paced around the room. Magneto looked deep in thought. Pyro clicked his lighter open and shut, since Magneto had had the wrist brace built for him it became more of a comfort device, it reminded him of old times, it reminded him of Bobby. The clicking was getting on Magnetos nerves, he pulled the lighter towards him. "If you keep shouting, I will crush this into oblivion" Pyro stopped pacing, breathing heavily. "Well, what do we do?"

"We recruit." Magneto said, throwing the lighter back at him.

The recruiting went better than expected, and they managed to get three new mutants on their side, it wasn't difficult though. The mutant community was getting uneasy with this talk of a cure. Getting to Mystique wasn't as easy as they thought, and Magneto was getting grouchier about it. It paid off though, and actually freeing her was easy though, the men guarding her weren't as good as they thought they were and they cut through them easily. He had heard of Jamie Madrox before, he had been on the news, but he never expected him to be so damned good looking. He would have to test out that multiple body thing later. Cain Marko, Juggernaut, frightened Pyro. He looked like a thug.

That was when they cured Mystique, even Pyro seemed more upset about it. He'd like Mystique, she'd been funny. But Magneto was cruel; he was crueller than Pyro had ever seen him before. "You're not one of us anymore." Pyro had suspected that Magneto was very 'Them vs. us" but he had never thought he would be_that _adamant about it. He would have sworn that Magneto had been in love with the blue woman as well. The look of betrayal on her face as they walked out haunted Pyro. He felt like he should have said something. His silence was eating him up inside.

The fact that the cure had been used as a weapon didn't even hit him until much later.

Bobby was getting a little sick of Rogue going on about the cure, about how she was definitely going to be getting it. She was beginning to insist that people called her Marie again. "Bobby, you want me to get the cure right?" Bobby was lying with her in his arms, careful of her skin. He legitimately wasn't sure if he wanted her to get the cure, "I want you to be happy Rogue, and if you're happy getting the cure than I'm happy." She smiled. "You better get used to calling me Marie again. Rogue's not a name for a human."

The thought of building an army excited Pyro, and it frightened him at the same time, he knew that it was what mutants needed, but he knew that he'd have to fight, and that was something he wasn't very good at, even with his wrist brace. Luckily it looked like many, many mutants were willing to fight, so perhaps they wouldn't rely on him as heavily. His constant feeling of uselessness wasn't helped by the fact the fact that Magneto always seemed to leave him behind. The plus side of this meant that he got to spend more time with Jamie. Jamie and he had a sort of 'friends-with-benefits' kind of thing going on, without the friends part. Jamie wasn't a pleasant person, and treated Pyro like shit, the only thing that the relationship, if you could call it that, had was that the sex was great. Pyro didn't care that he lost his virginity to Jamie, he supposed that he would have rather it had been Bobby but Jamie was fine too.

The death of the Professor hit everyone hard. It tore Kitty up; she had been closer to the Professor than a lot of them. Bobby hated to see his friend that way, he would have done anything to cheer her up. That was why he pulled her outside, he just wanted to make her smile. She was just his friend, which he may have had feelings for. She was surprisingly good at skating compared to Bobby, which was tough, because Bobby was _good_. They went around a few times, laughing, when she stopped him. "Thank you for this Bobby" she said with a smile, and a hug. He couldn't help but kiss her, she was a beautiful girl, a funny special girl that could walk through walls. He could kiss her without him dying. The kiss was brief, she pulled away first, "You have a girlfriend, I can't." Bobby nodded, they decided to go back inside. They had no idea that Rogue had been watching them.

Jean Grey scared Pyro. She was dangerous and not in control of her powers. Everyone thought so, the army that was. They had gathered at least one hundred people to fight by their sides. With every day that went past Pyro missed Bobby, and the school more. He had broken it off with Jamie after he'd punched Pyro in the face for no reason. He didn't have to stand for that bullshit. He had been told about his first _real_ mission, he had to firebomb a centre that was offering the cure. He was really, really fucking nervous.

Bobby never wanted Rogue to leave, he didn't want her to get the cure, he decided to go after her, so he went to the nearest centre available for curing mutants. He didn't meet her there. He met John. John had changed, a lot. "I figured she'd get the cure, she's pathetic." Bobby snarled and went toe to toe with the boy, looking him dead in the eyes. "She's doing it so she can _fuck_ me" The bravado dropped from Pyros face. "Yeah, that one thing _you_ could do that she couldn't, she's fixing that. And until you are forced to live without touching _anyone_ and have to give up your fire trick, you can shut your mouth about who's pathetic, _John_" Bobby felt his fist completely freeze over, he'd never managed that before. John laughed, pretending he didn't care. "Make a move, Ice man." Bobby shook his head. "I can't believe I used to think I loved you, _John_. Have fun having birthdays that nobody remembers, jack ass" He whispered venomously. Before Pyro could reply Bobby walked away. A rage took over Pyro, how dare stupid fucking Bobby say that, and who even brought up _love._ No one was in love with anyone. He would take Bobby's advice, he _would_ have fun. Pyro spun around and sent two big tunnels of fire into the building. _Fuck Bobby Drake, he would have fun_.

Bobby was furious. Angry tears flowed down his cheeks on the bus home. He missed the old John, the John that would hold his hand in the back seat of a car, the John that would just _know_ if he was scared out of his mind.

Pyro didn't regret it, not one bit. He was fighting for what he believed in. He regretted making Bobby hate him though, he could have made Bobby join their side, Bobby would have seen sense, if he hadn't insulted Rogue, then he could have brought Bobby back with him. He regretted that, not burning down the centre, which was necessary.

Bobby was nervous about going with Logan. He knew he was ready, but there was still a horrible sinking feeling in his stomach, he felt like he was going to vomit. They would be fine, he reasoned. They had Logan, and Storm, and Beast, and Kitty, and Piotr. They had to be okay. He just hoped that he wouldn't have to fight John, he wasn't sure if he could fight him for real.

Pyro looked out at the x-men that had gathered before them, he seen Bobby there. He desperately hoped that Bobby didn't try to fight him, he didn't want to hurt him. Magneto was holding him back. He had been practicing witting flying objects for a while now, and when Magneto needed him, setting the cars alight was as easy as getting the straw men he'd been using for practice. It was sort of fun, if he didn't think about what he was doing.

"Do you think you can take out your old friend?"

'_No'_

Bobby nodded stiffly at Logan, and stood up shakily. He would have to fight John, he didn't _want_ to, but he had to. Fire and Ice, one sort of cancelled the other out, but that was okay, because Bobby didn't want to actually _hurt_ John, who didn't seem to have the same thought, as he was getting closer and closer to Bobby. He felt the heat overcoming him.

"Maybe you should have stayed at school." Bobby felt a coolness covering him, the heat didn't seem to affect him anymore. He grabbed John's wrists and froze the lighters attached to them. "You never should have left" he said angrily, and head-butted the boy. He didn't care anymore, fucking John didn't seem to either. He looked down at his body, it looked like it was made entirely of ice, he kind of regretted hitting John so hard now, because it looked like he could do some serious damage. He looked down at the unconscious boy, a deep gash in his forehead. He heard people screaming, and looked up to see Professor Grey killing at least twenty people.

"_**Everybody run! Get off the island."**_

He seen Kitty running off the island, leading a young boy, everyone had started running now, he should go too. But he couldn't leave John. He grabbed the boy and caught up with Kitty.

"Him? You're bringing him?"

"I can't just leave him Kitty, I lo- he's my friend Kitty" Kitty just frowned at him, but didn't say anything else. Piotr caught up with them. They all sat at the edge of the bridge and waited.

Storm took them back to the school, a silence hung in the air. Piotr and Bobby took John down to the medical bay. They sat by his bed as a girl who could heal people worked on him. There was only so much she could do though, and she didn't have full control of her powers. "He's going to be okay, there may be some memory damage however. We won't know until he wakes up though." Bobby was ashamed. He hadn't meant for this, _memory damage_, what if he woke up not knowing who he was. '_Your name's John, you hate me and I did this to you, sorry' _Piotr let him cry on his shoulder, "You did what was needed of you. You didn't have to bring him back you know"

After waiting by his bed for an hour, with no sign of him waking up Bobby and Piotr trawled upstairs. He found Rogue in his room. "This wasn't what I wanted" He said softly. Rogue smiled, "I know, it's what _I _wanted." Bobby frowned and touched her face, and flinched back. "Rogue, we need to talk." She frowned, "It's Marie now Bobby, and about what?" Bobby sat on the bed and gestured for her to do the same. She refused.

"_Marie_. I did something bad today, I almost killed John" She frowned at him and sat beside him. "It made me realise what I wanted, and it's not you" She flinched away.

"_What?" _Bobby stood up. "Look Marie, I think you and I need to break up. I'm not in love with you."

She stood up shakily, her voice trembled with anger, "Who are you in love with then, is it John?"

Bobby shook his head, "I don't know, Marie, I'm confused. I just need to get through this alone. You deserve someone who will give you everything that you need, everything that you want, and that's not me." She slapped him, hard. He probably deserved it too. She bumped into Piotr on the way out, "Bobby, he's awake" Bobby nodded and made his way down stairs.

John didn't look well, not at all. Bobby rushed to the bed. John still seemed to be sleeping, but Bobby knew better. "John, are you awake?" the boy's eyes flew open and a scowl appeared on his face.

_Yaaaay! I can do what I want with the story now. I know what I'm going to do with it, but I'm going on holiday, so there might not be any updated for about three weeks._

_-zg_


	5. Chapter 5

_GAH! I'm a terrible person, and I thought I'd already updated this chapter. _

For a second John looked very confused, eyes darting about the room. Realisation slowly crept across Johns face, everything coming back to him, anger flashed in his eyes. He flinched away from Bobby and tried to jump up, the restraints around his wrists, chest and legs made that impossible. "Bobby, you get me get of this" he hissed, tugging at the restraints. Bobby took a step back, relief flooding through him. John's memory was working fine at least. "I can't, you've got to stay here for a while, until you get better."  
>"I'm better now, so let me the fuck out." he shouted, and winced, the pain in his head just getting to him, he continued though, unrelenting. "Bobby for fuck sake let me out and give me my lighter." the pain on his face was now apparent. "You did this to me, you asshole" John said gesturing to his forehead, the gash on his forehead had been stitched up, but it still looked fairly gruesome. Now that John was awake and back to his usual angry self, Bobby felt much less guilty. He sat on the seat by the bed, "Yeah, but you were going to burn me alive. And you're not getting out. Storm says you're dangerous." The pain only served to make John angrier, "That's because you got in my way, and I didn't want to hurt you. And give me my lighter back and I'll show you how dangerous I can be, Iceman." Bobby just frowned at the boy. He didn't know what he had expected, but this wasn't it. "John, listen, one you're all better, and calmed down, we'll think about taking the restraints off."<br>"Fuck you Bobby Drake, why don't you run off to Marie, she's all cured up right? Have fun with her." he said, there was something other than anger in his voice now, jealousy? At least he'd stopped shouting. "I broke up with her." Bobby mumbled, he wasn't sure why he told John, but it was worth the look on Johns face. The surprised look was quickly replaced by a smug one "What's the point in having a girlfriend you can touch, eh?" He said with a smirk. Bobby wanted to wipe that smile off of his face, he hated John sometimes. "Magneto got cured too" Bobby said, that did it, John wasn't smirking anymore. He looked more betrayed than anything else. Neither of them spoke for a while, until Johns nurse walked in with a plate of food. For a moment it looked like she was going to try and feed him, "I'll do it" Bobby said, taking the plate from her. She nodded and tried not to look too glad. John was staring at him, "What the fuck do you think you're doing"  
>"Feeding you, so shut the hell up or you're not going to be eating for a while." Bobby gathered up a fork full of the rice, and awkwardly held it out to John. "Bobby, seriously get the fuck out. I'd rather not eat."<p>

"Then don't eat, because those restraints aren't coming off." John turned away from Bobby, as much as he could. Bobby just shrugged and started eating it himself, although he wanted to throw it over John. How was it possible for one person to be so frustrating, he hadn't realised how hungry he'd been until he has eaten the entire plate of food. He put the plate down and went to walk out, he got to the door and he turned and said "I don't know what the hell they did to you in the Brotherhood, but you're an entirely different person now" He was out of the door before he could hear John react. His frustration ebbed away slowly as he walked along the corridor. Staying angry at John wasn't an easy thing, not for Bobby. He realised, in horror that if John apologised to him, asked if they could just kiss and make up, Bobby would probably forgive him. He also realised that John was too damn stubborn to ever admit his mistakes. 

Bobby went to the medical bay again the next day. John was looking a lot better; he'd bribed the nurse into taking off his restraints. It was apparent, from the lack of fire that he hadn't been given his lighter back. He would have to convince Storm to give it to him, he hadn't seen the thing in years, and sort of missed seeing in Johns hand. Bobby sat in the seat next to his bed. "Hey John."  
>John nodded at him, and punched him in the arm. Hard. "That's for trying to feed me. I can look after myself."<br>"Yeah I can see that." Bobby spat back at him. John turned his back on Bobby. An uncomfortable silence filled the room. It was broken by John "why do you keep coming here anyway? I don't want you here" He asked irritated. Bobby smiled, "You do want me here, if you didn't you would have thrown a hissy fit. And I've got no one else to talk to, the schools still pretty much empty, there's only Storm, and a few other people. So you'll just have to keep me company" John sighed, he turned to face Bobby. And punched him on the arm again, harder than last time. "That's for breaking my face." John said with a scowl. Bobby looked at the gash on John's forehead, he'd been avoiding looking. It wasn't pretty, the painful looking red gash was almost hidden by his hair, and he'd had to get stitches, which made it look even worse. He felt suddenly guilty. "Does it hurt?" He whispered, studying John's face, which scrunched up into a frown, "Of course it fucking hurts, asshole. You turned into a massive block of ice and head-butted me" He spat out, "I'm sorry John" He said, genuinely, he really was.  
>"I'm not John anymore, I'm Pyro" Bobby sighed and stood up, "Well then, let me know when John's back." He stood up and walked to the door, before adding in a whisper "Because I miss him." Before John had a chance to respond, Bobby was out of the door.<p>

_Not really much to say about this. Give me feedback, anything's appreciated_

_-zg_


	6. Chapter 6

_I quite like this chapter actually, although I hate describing people using their powers. :c_

John knew that Bobby didn't really want him to hear that, but he did. And he was angry. He had to stop himself running out after Bobby. That jackass doesn't understand, he thought scathingly, staring at the door, seeing if he could blow it up with the power of his mind. He was still the same person, so what if he preferred his Mutant name, so what if he was a little more militant about what he believed in. They both wanted the same thing, so what if John was a little more proactive about it. The nurse came in to give him food, which he ate hungrily, "Hey, when will I be allowed to get out, I feel better." The woman smiled at him, "I've been talking with Storm, and we both feel that you will be allowed out this evening, we have to do some more checks though. I don't know if that means you'll be able to go home though"  
>"I don't have a home." He snapped at her, "Can I get my lighter back, promise I won't kill you" he said with a humourless laugh. The nurse frowned, "I told Storm that you were asking for that too, she said that she doesn't have it, that it wasn't on you when you came here"<br>A coldness passed through him, like someone had injected ice water into his veins, "That's impossible, it was in my pocket..."  
>"Perhaps it fell out on the island." John sat up, and swung his legs off the bed, feeling very weak, he pointed at the nurse, who had taken several steps away. "No." He said simply. "No because that means I've lost it forever. And I can't lose it." He could feel his face getting hotter, a lump forming in his throat. He couldn't have lost his lighter, Bobby gave it to him, it was one of the only presents he'd ever gotten. The nurse made a swift exit. John fell back on the bed, trying to hold back the tears. It was more than a lighter to him, it was proof that someone cared about him once, it was a link to Bobby, and he felt powerless without it, he was powerless without it, and he hated that.<br>Rubbing his eyes he sat up slowly, he noticed the door was sitting slightly ajar, an escape. He stood up slowly and walked over to the locker with his clothes in it. He put on the bloodied jumper and the ripped jeans, and slid his feet into his old trainers, and walked out the door.  
>An overwhelming sense of freedom rolled over him as he stood in the lift up to the student area. Like Bobby had said, the school was empty, which meant he had to be quiet. The halls felt familiar to him, and he remembered his way to the front door. He couldn't get past the school steps. Every time he made a confident attempt to leave, he found he couldn't. He had missed the school, and missed Bobby, and missed everything about the place. He couldn't find a reason to leave. He had no home, no friends, no family, no money, and no plan. He eventually wandered back into the school, and up the stairs, he needed some air and he knew where he would go.<br>Before he had left the roof was a safe haven for him. On the roof no one would bother him and he could be alone in his thoughts. He found himself back up there, sitting on the slanted roof, near one of the sky lights in the attic, the sun warmed him as he contemplated his situation. He supposed he was lucky to be alive really, Bobby didn't have to carry him off the island, he didn't deserve to be saved, not the way he'd acted. His fingers tapped at the roof tiles, he hated no having his lighter, not being able to use his power, it made him anxious. He needed fire in his hands, he realised how cold he felt without it. John carefully slid back inside and made his way to Professor Summers' old room, he doubted that it had been cleared out yet. The man had confiscated enough of his lighters, John figured he might still have a few lying about. He found a bundle in the wardrobe in a box with 'Student Junk' written on it. It was filled mostly with rubbish, but near the bottom he seen what he was looking for. He picked up a couple of disposable lighters ones and tidied the box away. Excitement flowed through him, he didn't want to try them inside, if he burned Storms carpet then he was in trouble. He ran outside and sat by a pond, he was getting tired.  
>He pulled out one of the plastic lighters, the one least likely to run out by the looks of it. He flicked it on, and suddenly felt warm again, he pulled the fire into his hand, the flame felt good there. He practiced with the fire, it felt unusual to only have one hand to use again, but it felt familiar too. After practicing using one hand for a while he felt so much better, he felt warm again, and his thumping head could be ignored. After about an hour he was sat back down on the grass, suddenly feeling exhausted. He lay back and swirled fire above him, smiling to himself.<br>"Everyone's looking for you" a voice behind him said. John smirked, "Everyone? I'm worth that much bother? I'm touched." Bobby sat beside him, arms around his knees looking at him. "I think they're just worried you'd burn the school down." John frowned. "Which is why I'm outside." John looked at Bobby, a familiar calculating look was on Bobby's face. "I needed the fire. Needed to feel it on my fingers, feel it around me. You don't get it. You can make ice whenever you want. I can't make my own fire. It's not nice to have it taken away from you" he let the fire die away from above him and pushed himself up on his elbows. "I understand. Storm will too, if you tell her why." Bobby said quietly. "My lighter, it fell out of my pocket on that island. It's gone, and I can't get it back" John said, putting all his effort into his voice staying steady, it failed in the end, his voice trembling as he spoke. He sat up and picked up the lighter beside him again, making little marble sized fire balls spin. "Shit John, you went everywhere with that thing, I'm sorry dude." Bobby said, putting a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Sorry's not going to get it back" John mumbled, putting down his lighter. "I suppose it's payback- karma or something. In return for being a giant douchebag, I lose my one connection back to you" John didn't even have to look at Bobby to tell that he looked guilty. "Well, if you stay here you'll have me" Bobby started awkwardly, "I'm sure I could even get you a new lighter too" John smiled at him, he was still pretty pissed about Bobby landing him in the medical bay, but he knew how to make up forit. "Well, if you're going to buy me a new one, at least make sure it looks cool" He said, lying down on the grass again, Bobby grinned and lay down beside him. John picked up the lighter and swirled long streaks of fire in the air again. He felt even better now, it was the best he'd felt in months

_So today I learned that describing how John uses his powers is difficult and I hate it._

_Any feedback is brilliant_

_-zg_


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